Rorate Caeli

Congratulations to Canadian and Brazilian Catholics!

Pope Francis signed earlier today the canonization decrees (by equipollent canonization) of three major figures of the greatest religious enterprise in history, the (old-style) evangelization of the Americas:

- two whose lives were entirely given over to the evangelization of Canada (Québec):


François de Montmorency-Laval, of the illustrious house of Montmorency, first Bishop of Québec and founder of the renowned Séminaire de Québec;

Marie de l'Incarnation (Guyart), born in Tours, founder of the Ursuline convent of Québec.

- one whose life was entirely given over to the evangelization of Brazil:


José de Anchieta, S.J., Spaniard (the Canarian son of a Basque family), called the "Apostle of Brazil" and founder, along with Portuguese Fr. Manuel da Nobrega, S.J., of several cities, including Sao Paulo.